Summer Break Week 5

This week was Reuben's camp week! He went to Randolph College Tech Cats Kid's Coding Camp. He enjoyed camp so much! There was one problem we had to deal with: a kid who cussed non stop and wouldn't stop talking, loudly, about sex. According to Reuben he was a 9 year old going into 4th grade, so hopefully he did not actually know anything about sex? To me it sounded like this kid was watching, or had been shown pornography, which is so sad. Brian and I didn't know if we should talk to the staff, and Reuben really didn't want us to create any problems so we decided to just pray about it and give him some tools to deal with it himself the next day.

The second day of camp this kid ended up being sent home because he wasn't obeying, and then he was sick the rest of the camp, which was a relief. I'm praying for him and his family. Sounds like he might have a rough home life. 

But poor Reuben heard some really detailed descriptions about a few sexual acts that honesty he didn't need to know about until he was an adult! I guess it's just the world we live in, but my heart was grieved. 

As to what Reuben did at camp: they did scratch, python and Minecraft coding, went rock climbing, ate ice cream, did some tug of war outside and listened to some local engineers and scientists give short talks. They were also coding little cars to run mazes and complete tasks. I bet he did a million other things too, but as his mother I only get to hear bits and bobs of his day's narration. He had fun. I missed him. 

picking Reuben up from camp...

Becky, Esther and I had the best girls week. I tried to do something special each day before lunch. Monday we went out for coffee, grocery shopped and went to two thrift stores! Tuesday we got bubble tea and went to the park. Wednesday we picked up our raw milk, went to the library and got bubble tea again! Thursday we went downtown, walked, shopped and ate chocolate brownies and had hot chocolate and finished up the day by visiting a friend. Friday we did our regular swim day. It was a special time even though we really missed Reuben. In the afternoons we played a lot outside on the slip and slide, read books together and did chores. 

Monday and Tuesday Esther refused to nap. Wednesday and Thursday we did contact naps since I really needed her to sleep, and it was hard to go back when she had been laying down in her own bed for naps for weeks! I wanted to clean things and knit and crochet and she wanted to use me as a pillow. I had to let it go and be a pillow.

I've been having a hard week. My house feels cluttered and everything was a little overwhelming with all the driving to drop Reuben off and pick him up at specific times! I don't know how moms do this weekly! Chores have not been getting done on time and camp week is just abnormal. That's okay. I only made it to the gym once this week and that is bothering me too. I don't like to feel behind. Oh, well, I'll try again next week! The kids had a fun week and we got a lot done outside of the house. Here is to next week being more productive inside the house!

I'm still dealing with mourning the loneliness of motherhood and trying to love my past self who desperately needed some help when I had two toddlers and didn't have anyone to help. A lady at my church is due with her fourth and it's so exciting, but she has a mother in law who helps once a week and a neighbor who watches all three of her kids once a week. I had a mother in law who yelled at me for breastfeeding and didn't even bring me a meal. And no neighbors who ever helped but only got us in trouble for having a car parked on our property that was out of inspection (apparently you have to have a car cover for it--why couldn't they just tell us rather than sending the government? sheeesh) and neighbors who complained about our grass never being mowed. It makes me feel sad for myself who had to do that all alone, I wish I had help like that when I needed it with two small toddlers! 

I'm so glad I am in a better space now! I don't need childcare anymore, but I hope I can deal with the negative emotions that keep coming up and move on. It's not jealously. It's like I see them thriving but behind that picture I see myself crying and alone and wish I hadn't had to go through that. It's like I wish I could go back and give myself a hug and tell myself it's going to be okay. Well, it wasn't okay. And maybe that is what I need to realize.

But often when I see someone in a good headspace with babies/toddlers I have to grieve for myself all over again. 

Big deep breaths. I'm okay. I survived. God was with me, and that will have to be enough, until he can comfort me in heaven.

Brian also was able to work from home part of this week since the air conditioner was broken at his office! Hopefully it will be fixed next week. It was nice to see him for lunch, we all miss him terribly due to him working such long hours for us. 

Next week is the halfway week in our summer vacation!!

Summer Break Week 4 Day 6 and 7

Saturday we ran to the farmers market and I helped a church friend move which was good exercise. Brian mowed the lawn and did the grocery shopping. So much necessary chores going on.

I've had a bit of a sweet tooth recently and ate a donut after lunch! It was so delicious. I plan to have at least one or two more donuts this summer! 

I have just been feeling down lately and stressed over Reuben's summer camp. He leaves tomorrow for summer camp all week and I will miss him! It's not an overnight camp, but a day camp...He's so excited and I know he will have a blast! It will be weird to be without him... I can't wait to hear how much fun he has. He's growing up so quickly and he reaches my shoulder now! In two or three years I think he will be as tall as me. He is one shoe size away from being able to wear my shoes! 

Becky and Esther and I have a lot of fun things planned for just us girls. I'm going to keep things low key and relaxed.

Sunday, today--we went to church and I was tired. I did chores. Really, so exciting. Um, I'm going to crochet some. 

We spent the afternoon watching the kids have a blast on their slip and slide. 

I need another vacation. But since that isn't in the cards for us, I think I'll go have another donut instead. 

Behold, Our New Dishwasher! (Week 4, Day 5)

Let's just throw day 5 in the trash can, shall we? Either I tried to do too much, or everyone slept wrong, but it was a struggle. I made homemade buttermilk biscuits for breakfast and they were the highlight of the morning. At 10 we did go swimming, but one of my children cried almost all day before that. Then another one started up. It was like they took turns. My sanity was severely taxed. 

By lunch I was just done. We had leftover meatballs for lunch with homemade mac and cheese. I put the baby down for a nap and after a few chores, thought to myself, oh, now I can sit down and finally read some of my book. I kid you not, the last few times I have sat down to read I have only been able to read a few pages to maybe a chapter before getting interrupted by someone. Yesterday it was my husband who had the audacity to come home on time. Which was 5:30pm. It only happens 2-3 times a year because he is an electrical and computer engineer and usually works 1-3 hours overtime daily. Then there are the kids. I won't count the interruptions of the kids because I don't have enough fingers. We are working on asking mama to pause her reading before blurting out questions because I need a second to pull myself out of the 1700s and into the modern age before settling disputes and handling snacks. It causes me severe whiplash to hear constantly "Where is my _______? I need help with ________." Or my favorite, "I'm hungry can I have a snack?" Esther will literally come up to me and bang on me and go MOMMY MOMMY MOMMY until I give her attention. Then she smiles the biggest smile and shows me a book or a block or asks to nurse. Which is adorable, but also distracting. 

But there I was. Esther was sleeping. My older kids were having screen time. The world was my oyster! Uninterrupted reading, here I come!

I literally looked at the clock and it was hours before my husband was expected home. I remember thinking oh, now I can really relax!

I curled up on the couch and had my book and made myself a little bowl of ice cream when...my husband walked through the door. It was 2:30pm.

I stared at him in utter disbelief. God does not want me to read this book. Or relax. What was going on?

"I'm not fired," He said. (Always my first question when he gets home early, which has happened about 3-4 times since I've known him.) "I decided to take a half day to spend time with you all." 

Ya'll, I almost cried! Not from happiness, but from vexation. I love him coming home on time but he immediately wanted me to put down my book and give him my undivided attention and ALL I WANTED TO DO WAS READ. I got mad. I said, I just want to read my book! And he got upset because here he was all ready to spend time with me. It was not my best moment. Anyway we ended up compromising and he went out and played video games for an hour in his home office with Reuben and I read my book and felt like scum. Even my ice cream tasted like disappointment. 

Then, when Esther woke up we all spent time together while I still felt like I had ruined his gift...and then I got tired and grouchy and was sharp with the kids and had to apologize and it was just not the best day. I asked my husband to please not to surprise me with random days off but to text me in advance so I can pivot my plans for the day. He said he would try. Anyway it's fine now. By that I mean I am going to try to think about what is best for our family not about what I want in a given moment. But really, what a crazy day it was.

I'm not the best with surprises.

At least our new dishwasher is amazing, and runs so quiet I forget it's on and try to open it.

It just goes to show you that even when you have the best laid plans God's plans might be different and learning to love interruptions should be the 11th commandment.  

Paper Sloyd: Envelope

Just one today, the paper sloyd envelope tutorial. Enjoy! 

Pool Day (Summer Break Week 4, Day 4)

Today I woke up knowing we had a busy day. We had a planned nature group outing from 10-11:30 to walk on the Liberty University trails and then I had scheduled a lunch with my new friend Chelsea at Cava right after at 12:30. For some reason I also woke up feeling like I had been hit by a bus--life sometimes gives you lemons and those lemons means even when you should be sleeping your body decides not to, without your permission. Somehow even though I was in bed all night, I didn't sleep well and felt terrible this morning. Not terrible like sick, terrible like I needed eight more hours of sleep and a hot toddy. It was a struggle to get up and get dressed. The children were asking me things and I wasn't hearing them, much less responding. We had to leave in an hour in a half and I was still in messy-bun-pj mode and no one had been served breakfast.

Somehow I made some tea, scarfed it down, had a shower and dressed, packed for nature group and--

and then a friend I hadn't seen in a long time--her name is Morgan--invited me to a pool she is a member of, and I said yes. I miss her and her girls so much! Becky loves her girls, Amethyst and Jovie, and we hadn't seen them since December. And the pool! My kids love the pool. I told them I want to swim as much as possible this summer, so how could I say no? She also invited us right at Esther's nap time, from 1-4. But how could I let a little thing like a nap get in the way of fun? 

Well, we couldn't make it until 1:40 due to lunch with my friend, but I decided to go. Why not? I'm already tired. A day out sounds fun! The kids were thrilled--especially when she said they served snacks. They packed their swim stuff and so did I, and off we went (with bagels) to nature group. 

Nature group was so fun. If you can call walking through a very rocky and root-infested path while baby-wearing a 30 pound toddler fun. Well, it was fun, and hard work. I talked to other moms! I felt so whole after. That's one reason I love mom's group. Just being in community and taking about everything under the sun while watching our lovely kids run around in the trees. Perfection. 

It went so well. Then we went out to Cava afterwards! Chelsea ran late so we were only able to sit with her for 15 minutes but it was still awesome. She's due to have a baby in 2-3 months and I cannot be more excited. It's her first! 

We ran to swimming, and on the way Esther Rose fell asleep. I was so glad. She was going to get her nap! She's been my only baby who transfers well to the stroller. I transferred her right in and she continued snoozing. Win! And the pool was so much cheaper than the other one we have been going to! I was thrilled, my wallet was thrilled, and Becky and Reuben were thrilled. They immediately became less thrilled when I slathered them in non-nano sunscreen, but that is that--and what child likes sunscreen--I want them to have a chance against skin cancer so sunscreen it is. 

The pool is awesome. It has a diving board and we will for so sure be back! But the pool is unheated so it did take a few deep breaths to get used too! 

Anyway Esther Rose woke up about 15 minutes later and started crying so I put her in the pool quickly. She had fun, after we got over the cold water! She ate two ice pops, one orange and one purple. We don't do much food coloring in our family so it will be interesting to see how she reacts. She swam and clung to her mama who was also cold, but we all had a blast. It was so much fun to catch up with Morgan! I loved it. And her. Hope to see her this summer a lot!

We came home, showered, I did a bit of chores--popped on a movie and made popcorn for the kids--and peanut butter and jelly for dinner since Mama was tired and it was a Day. They watched Frozen. 

Can you believe I didn't take a single swimming photo? I will have to next time. Reuben jumping from the diving board. Becky practicing her swim. All the frolicking and fun! Ice cream from the little shop. So many good memories for summer. Esther trying to eat a freezy pop. I could go on and on!

If you can imagine it the forecast for next week is worse! Another day of rain added making 9 days rain forecasted in a row! Many people are going to have a very wet basement next week. We probably will not swim next week. A lot of inside time. But so much fun because we all love each other!

This week has been so very good and healing. It is good to say yes to things when I can! It's also good to say no. We were invited blueberry picking yesterday and I said no because it was an hour away, and also Reuben is allergic to blueberries. Life is good. I am content. God is good. Summer is going so well. Thank you God!

I'm going to slip into bed and read more of The Mysteries of Udolpho. Emily's aunt has earned my smoldering dislike.

Brian is installing our new dishwasher as I write this post. Yay!

Summer Week 4, Day 3

Brian woke up with a migraine today and still went to work, poor Brian. He said it was a little better at lunch which for him means it's still the same but he wants to be positive. Or, sometimes that he doesn't want me to worry. 

We had such a good day today. I started with breakfast of oatmeal with cranberries and coconut sugar which two of my children liked and one didn't. The one that didn't made himself eggs. I did the dishes, showered, dressed, and read books again. Reuben picked The Cookie Tree and Miss Twiggley's Tree and Becky picked The Curious Fish and The Land of Long Ago. After we read books my mom came over which was awesome and she played with the kids while I knitted for half an hour and watched YouTube videos. I felt so rested. Afterwards I hung out downstairs while the kids played some board games with her and I heated up fried rice leftovers for lunch.

I then put the baby to nap and set up the slip'n'slide for the older two while my mom went home. It was pleasant to have the house to myself for another half an hour though I didn't do much. It was a lazy sort of day. I did a bit of cleaning and read another chapter of The Mysteries of Udolpho. It's such a huge book I think it might take a month to finish! And in true gothic fashion it's already seeped in mysteries. What woman was St. Aubert looking at in his bedchamber and weeping over? What are the papers hidden under the floor that he tells Emily to burn? I'm dying to figure it all out. But its so long...I am tired of the paragraphs and paragraphs about the foggy woods and hawthorn trees! Ann didn't write for the modern audience with our 20-second video-short attention spans... But I'm going to keep going. I feel it in me that this book is going to be good if I give it a chance. It was one of the most popular novels of the time and I'm sure for good reason! But girl, why so many pages? Oh yeah, I think they were paid by the word back then. If you read Dickens you can totally see that he, at least, was paid by the word. And he knew how to milk it.

Around 2 the baby woke up and we nursed again and then I premade some meatballs for dinner. Even though it was 85f or something close to that we all went to the park and played for half an hour and then spent another half hour in the library before picking up our raw milk and heading home. I forgot to bring money to buy floss. I shall try again tomorrow. Yes, I buy floss and pick up my raw milk at the same place. It's not weird, it's convenient. 

I got the best picture ever of the kids at the park. It's perfect. 

I was exhausted when we got home. The kids watched Frozen 2 and I read another chapter from my book (and cooked the meatballs). Alas, they were too spicy! I felt awful! Good thing I had some leftover pizza in the fridge that the kids could eat! Brian loves spicy meatballs, he'll love them. Everything was great until I checked the weather. Why is there another week of rain? We had that last week! 

seriously?

Brian got home at 7 and tore out our dishwasher because we get a new one tomorrow and I'm so excited. We bought the quietest dishwasher. It's going to be amazing. And his headache was almost all better, he said. God is good!

Week 4, Day 2

I woke up Tuesday morning with zero interest in cooking or cleaning. When this happens it is so hard to get going! I tried to simplify. I showered, got dressed--then I asked the kids what they wanted for breakfast because I was out of ideas. They wanted sausage and eggs, so I made that and then I did all the dishes. We had leftover beef and broccoli in the fridge that I planned to heat up for lunch and I was so grateful to my past self for making extra on Sunday! After all that I did feel a lot better. We read books! Reuben picked I'm Trying to Love Spiders and Chirri and Chirri in the Tall Grass and Becky picked The Rabbit Children and Woody and Little Pip. Esther nursed one side through the first book and the other through the second book and then was a regular menace through the last two. She likes to grab the books or start singing at the top of her lungs while I try to read. Toddlers are wonderful but crazy.

We had a doctor's appointment for Reuben and Rebekah for Osteopathic Neuromuscular Manipulation after Becky's Piano class, so I told Reuben to pack the Nintendo switch because these appointments are usually long. But the last one wasn't long so I was hopeful this one wouldn't be. You can laugh with me later.

Anyway, the hour before piano I kicked the kids out of the house (nicely, I am nice...I simply told them they would be given a chore if they didn't go outside...) and I did a bunch of chores. Then we heated up the leftover Beef and Broccoli and I wanted everyone to eat outside but they said there were too many bugs so I let them eat inside. 

Piano in the summer is hard. I half forget to practice with Becky and sometimes I even forget we have a piano. I need to make it a priority because she has a recital coming up in 4 weeks and she's seven, so I am her motivation. We had three practices at home this week. It's slightly embarrassing to give the sheet to the instructor. It's like, here is evidence of my total failure as a mother. Please enjoy my ineptitude. 

Becky plays so beautifully and I love to hear music in our house! It's wonderful to dream that maybe she can teach her own children or play in church or whatever she wants to do with the gift of music. Sometimes it is quite the struggle for both of us, there are tears and often she wants to quit. If we wrote a memoir about it together it might be called Death by Piano or Things My Mother Makes Me Do. Okay, sometimes she enjoys it. But sometimes she doesn't. It's a good life lesson for both her and me. 

After Piano we had about 40 minutes to kill before our appointments. We went to Hobby Lobby and somehow I ended up spending $59. I got Reuben a lunch box for camp next week and a Bluey placemat for Esther that she loved and a squishy ball for her that she wouldn't put down and some beads to make a friend a necklace for her birthday and some chains that Becky wanted and some pipe cleaners Becky wouldn't put down, and somehow instead of that being 22.59 it was just shy of 60! Things really are expensive. And the beads were 50% off! 

We all left feeling happy. Retail therapy is good for the soul.

The doctor's office is right next door to Hobby lobby and we were there for two hours and twenty minutes and that was so long! It is worth it--we love the doctors over there and they have worked wonders for the kids, but it is a lot! Becky went first and there was a doctor in training who told me he thought she had scoliosis and I was worried for about 30 minutes before the regular doctor, Allison Bardowell, said she didn't. What a relief! THEN when Allison was working on Reuben he was having really bad pain in his neck (he fell out of a tree and landed on the back of his neck!) that she wanted to give him an X-ray to make sure he didn't have a fracture in his spine. He was stressed to hear that (and so was I but I was trying not to show it) when Esther fell off the stool right onto her head and started screaming at the top of her lungs. So then I had to pop my boobs out in front of everyone to nurse her, which was just great and awkward while holding a crying sobbing baby and trying not to cry myself. 

The X-rays (I wonder how much that will cost?) were thankfully clear, no fracture for Reuben. Both kids feel so much better after their adjustments and we finally got out the door and I bought everyone French fries from Chick-fil-a and Esther took one bite of hers and fell asleep holding it. Then I called my friend who lives only a mile from Hobby Lobby and asked her if I could stop by to pick up some homeopathic X-Ray in a 30c. She said yes because she's a gem and I don't deserve her, but it really made me feel better to dose Reuben after his electromagnetic bath. 

Anyway I felt like I had just taken a ride on the emotional roller coaster and by the time we got home I, and everyone else in the car, desperately needed a mental break. Thankfully it was hot and sunny and I was able to transfer Esther to her bed where she napped for an hour and a half, and the older kids set up their slip and slide and had a blast in the back yard. I cleaned the whole house and put away 3 loads of laundry and washed two more and made pizza for dinner. After dinner, Esther woke up and the kids all had ice cream and watched Rapunzel. I took the movie time to sit down to begin The Mysteries of Udolpho and was all ready to relax when daddy came home an hour early! That was nice but he had a migraine which was not nice. 

He woke up with an even worse headache and still had to go into work this morning, poor Brian. 

What a day. I can't even imagine what the rest of the week will hold...what a day, what a day. God is good, but what a day!

Summer Break Week 4, Day 1

The dreaded day--the end of vacation was here. I woke up only to discover that my cycle had come, and since we are trying to conceive I was a bit bummed for half a minute. Then I remembered to celebrate not being pregnant because pregnancy is hard, cumbersome and did I mention labor? God knows what he is doing and his ways are better than mine. Also half the time I am fine with the family size we have. 

I don't know what I want for breakfast today, I thought, much less if we should have another baby. But sometimes I really want one! For Esther to have a friend and for my husband to finally realize our house is too small for this many people. Because babies are cute and cuddly.

My mental health really doesn't need another small human to take care of. But, I'm almost 40 so if it's going to happen, the next two years are probably the best time for it. Before I declutter my maternity clothes? 

Today I made bacon, eggs, and chopped up some sourdough bread left over from the farmers market for breakfast. I also packed my husband a lunch. I can't always pack him a lunch so I felt really on point this morning. I may even have felt a little too good about it, so obviously God had a plan to humble me later.

Anyway, Esther Rose woke up around 7 which is a bit early for her so I knew she would have an early nap. Which was not great because we planned to go hang out at Jessica's house after breakfast and chores! I decided to make lunch right after breakfast and I am so glad I did. I made fried rice with chicken! And I packed some of it up for my husband's lunch tomorrow. Forethought is easy when we are on summer break and not homeschooling!

So, after reading some chapter books with the girls (Reuben was reading his own book in his room) we loaded up the car and went to see Jessica and Jeong! It was amazing to talk to other adults and let the kids play for a bit! We also watched a really old movie called Paddle to the Sea which was made in the 1960s and relates to the book I read to Becky this year. Paddle is an excellent book, and not so much a movie, though it was cute. They left out the best parts of the book and changed too much. Movie producers really should realize people love the book and thats 80 percent why they watch the video version--and they should stop changing and editing so much. Seriously. You have one job. Please stop thinking you know better than the author. 

Halfway through the movie Esther knocked over my entire cup of tea onto the floor! I don't know what I was thinking letting her get so close to my cup. Or filling it up so much! Hah, toddlers. On the way home Esther fell asleep in the car but I transferred her successfully into her bed where she slept for about an hour, I guess that's all I get today. We all ate fried rice while she slept and she had hers when she woke up. And there are leftovers! Yay!

Then we played outside, built a fort...but the fort was invaded by some wasps so the girls finished their tea party inside. We read more of our free read (currently All of a Kind Family) played playdough, made smoothies and snack plates...and then I took 30 minutes to myself while the kids minded Esther (15 minutes each, I pay them $1 each) By the way, Esther also spilled her full cup of smoothie all over the place! So many spills today. She was so cute. She went: what happened mama what happened? Two is the cutest age ever.

I've been on hold with the billing department for Esther's Pedi for about 10 minutes now trying to ask a question about her bill. She shouldn't have a bill. We had a 2 year check up a few weeks ago and those should be covered by her insurance? Hopefully they answer soon and we can get it all figured out.

A good full day where I didn't do near enough laundry! The house is a mild mess and that's okay. We do live here. I haven't even looked in the kids room and I think I'll keep it that way until tomorrow. Happy Monday! At least I brushed my hair today. 

I'm making sausage patties, roasted veggies and noodles for dinner! Send prayers everyone likes it. 

Summer Break Week 3

This week was so special. My husband had the entire week off! Strangely it was rainy and in the 60s--a little cold for summer! We spent the week relaxing, having ice cream, working on our siding, playing Minecraft and doing all the normal weekly things--but with hubby. 

My neck is much better but still hurting on and off. My taste (from when I had covid) is finally all the way back! 

The kids had their end of year co-op party where they put on a production of A Midsummer's Night Dream (The 30-minute version!) It was so fun. We went swimming the next day as a family. So many stay-cation memories. 

Esther still isn't sleeping through the night so I am still tired. My house is still behind on laundry and I am about to go do a bunch of it right after I finish this post. Esther is not napping today. We ate all the leftovers for lunch so I have to cook dinner. Next week will be back to work for Brian and back to normal for the rest of us! And back to 70-80 degree weather! 

Paper Modelling: Cart, Kite and Screen

Three more Paper Modelling tutorials for your homeschool fun! These are the cart, kite and screen! Enjoy!

Summer Break Week Two

We had a very busy summer break week where I said 'yes' to waayyy too many things outside my house and ended up burnt out and stressed at the end (and in bed for a day with a pulled muscle in my neck). Why don't I ever learn moderation? The kids had fun, nothing got done, and there was lots of driving. 

Monday we did four things. Four. Am I crazy? It would have been fine but Tuesday had three things and the fun kept on giving! Wednesday we rested like crazy and that was nice, followed by a crazy Thursday and Friday. Reuben made it to the playoffs for his little league flag football (I touched on this in other posts) but they didn't win. That's okay! They came in second which is a huge achievement! They did score a touchdown (I think the other team, the Commanders, scored four touchdowns) which was really nice and I know they did their best. 

Reuben with his team!

Friday we went swimming and to a potluck with our church. It was so cozy. Saturday was the farmers market where we bought too much sourdough bread (yum) and the day I had a pulled muscle...and here we are at Sunday again. My neck is better and I cleaned the kitchen and emptied the fridge of any leftovers that had overstayed their welcome and now my kids are running around with 600x energy and it's almost 8pm. Why do they have so much energy in the evenings and I'm running on leftover coffee and broken sleep? I'll never understand it. 

I got one sleeve almost done on my rainbow sweater!

I"m behind on laundry but that's fine. I'm behind on chores but it's fine. It's a season and I"ll be okay.

My husband found this old phone in a trashcan at his work and his boss said he could have it so he fixed it (which in itself is kinda amazing) and brought it home. The kids are obsessed. He linked it to his iPhone with bluetooth using something called Cell2Jack and taught the kids how to use it. The first time Reuben was confused how to hang up. Where's the hang up button, he said? We had to tell him you just put down the phone on the stand. That is what hanging up is. I was tickled. 

I'm so thankful for my husband yesterday who did both lunch and dinner while I laid in bed with a pulled muscle, in miserable pain. I'm also so glad it's better today and I hope it will be even better tomorrow. God is good.

Here is to another week--week three of summer break--that will start tomorrow! We have some busy days and some rest days but it's so much lighter than week two, I am sure we will make it through. Love you all!

Paper Sloyd: Handkerchief Box, Card Case, Comb Holder

Another three paper sloyd tutorials for fun craft time with your Charlotte Mason students! Enjoy! This is the Handkerchief Box, Card Case and Comb Holder. Good luck! Have you ever done sloyd? 

Everyone's Exhausted.

This week has been absolutely crazy. Monday we did four things. I try to keep it to one thing a day, but things piled up before I knew it! I started the day with yoga, then we had our homeschool evaluation (it went great) followed by me bringing a friend a meal (she lives 35 minutes away) and we ended the day with Reuben's football game, which he won! 

Tuesday was also jammed packed--Reuben had a dental appointment, followed by Becky's Piano lesson and the semifinal football game for Reuben, which his team again won and now they get to play in the finals on Thursday, which is crazy! Reuben's team was seeded at 5--and they played the number 1 team on Tuesday who had never lost this season...the upset was quite exciting! Thursday they will play the number 2 seeded team, who look quite good, I have no idea what will happen.

I feel like I've been running around like crazy for two days though. Today loomed rainy and cool, and we have rested. I read books to the kids and made a delicious homemade breakfast with tea, and sourdough pizza for lunch. We did go out to pick up our raw milk and visit the library but that's it. Home it is--I've just stuck chicken in the oven for dinner and am going to sit down to knit.

Tomorrow I volunteer again and Reuben has his last game. Friday also is busy with swimming and a church potluck. I'm keeping next week minimal for sure...will be nice to have football over with!

Keep praying for Reuben to heal. I want him to be breathing through his nose so badly. I'm praying for it every day.

Today I took time to do some cleaning and decluttering and I also steamed all my linen clothes and it feels so nice to nest a bit. I need to redo my toenails and nails and clean all my shoes--that's next on my list! 

How are you all?

Paper Sloyd: Portfolio, Thread Winder, Match Scratcher

Three more paper sloyd tutorials for your homeschool day. Enjoy! 

Summer Break Day 5 and 6

I'm getting used to no school! Things are evening out. This is good.

Friday I woke up feeling ready for our busy day. I made bagels and sausage for breakfast and served it with tea in our new tea cups. It was almost like having our own little tea party at breakfast. I just needed a cleaner floor.

Daddy had the day off but we all let him sleep in.

Friday a local pool hosts pay-to-swim for anyone, and since they usually require a membership we try to go every Friday. (We don't have a membership and the pay-to-swim is only $5 a kid!) Daddy stayed home for some alone time but Reuben, Becky and Esther and I went swimming from 9-11. My friend Amy and her four kids came and we had a blast. At one point during our swim they opened these bay doors and two goats from some neighboring farm walked in and Reuben was like, eh mom is there supposed to be goats in here? And no, there was not supposed to be goats in there. 

We came home exhausted and I made sourdough pizza for lunch and then Esther and I promptly took a two hour nap. I was glad she and I both took such a long nap since we would be going to Reuben's game later and would be up late, and there is nothing worse than a tired, screaming toddler at a sporting event...

Anyway, Reuben's game was postponed until the next day due to intermittent thunder storms. This is the third time his game has been rescheduled due to rain. Crazy. 

Esther didn't go to sleep until 10pm. That also was crazy. Daddy made dinner which was really nice, a beef and broccoli dish that everyone loved. But he only made one cup of rice and everyone was lacking in rice. I told him we are a 2-cup of rice family now, but does he listen? No, he did not. 

I finally got to bed at 10:30 which is really late for me. I like to be in bed by 9 but it is impossible to go to bed with a very awake baby crawling on your face. 

Saturday we all woke up late, threw on our clothes and ran to the farmers market before Reuben's game where I bought donuts for my kids for breakfast. I'm the best mom. They were thrilled. I ate a bagel. I did eat a donut after lunch... Reuben's team won their football game and they get to go to the second tier of the playoffs! Next we play the Dolphins on Tuesday, but I am not holding my breath because rain is forecast. It will probably be rescheduled. 

We came home and every Saturday I make a salad for lunch with sourdough bread. Esther took a nap but this time I just watched meaningless YouTube videos that while entertaining, make my head feel like it's full of cotton candy. I really need to have better boundaries with the internet. Right now I only get on YouTube on the weekends but maybe that is too much! I always end up enjoying it while watching but after I feel like I have wasted my time and gotten nothing done, which makes me stressed. I do not feel that way when I read a book. We contact nap, so I am stuck wherever she is. Usually I read to the kids during this time or finish up school, but I take Esther contact naps for myself on the weekends and...veg out. This is okay right? I have no idea.

Brian mowed half the lawn, and is currently grocery shopping. And that ends our first week of summer break from homeschool!  

I made it through Summer Break Day Four!

I don't know why but today I woke up feeling anxious. I think it was because this day was jam-packed and I need to remember NOT to do this next week! Or any week. ONE outing outside the house is enough! Today we had three and I should not have done that.

Anyway, we had sausage, eggs and sourdough for breakfast and then Esther and I ran off to volunteer for an hour and a half! That was soothing, I love talking and hearing about birth. The class I was mentoring today was on labor and delivery. Esther was actually well behaved this time and we had a relaxed group chat that was interesting and heartwarming. 

Esther fell asleep on the way home for approximately five minutes and that proceeded to be her only nap of the day. Her nap time is 1pm. Not 11am, when I was driving home. Oh well. 

We had about an hour until we had to be at our homeschool evaluation so I heated up some leftover spaghetti for lunch and chatted with my mom who had stopped by. It was awesome to see her and I already miss her. I didn't clean my kitchen or dining room which made my anxiety worse, but thats okay. Anyway, I took my anxious and stressed self to the library (with our homeschool portfolios and nature notebooks) where we were supposed to meet Sarah, the evaluator...but we couldn't find her anywhere! It turns out she had forgotten to come and since she lives an hour away she was not able to come that day. For some reason this caused me to feel loads better. I told her it was fine, we will reschedule later--and took the kids out to bubble tea followed by a nature walk with our nature group.

We were all hot, sweaty and a little bit muddy but we made it home and after showers and tick checks I popped on The Wild Robot for the kids and cleaned the kitchen and dining room and made tacos for dinner. Esther only watched half the movie in typical toddler fashion and needed cuddles and milks for second half, but that was okay. I love her so much! 

That was really our day. Brian got home at 6 and hurt his back, I gave him a massage and now I'm going to unload all the dishes and do even more laundry. The busy day is done! Tomorrow ends our first week of summer vacation, and all the weeks to follow are filling my head with dreams of deep cleaning and decluttering.

Not to mention knitting, reading, and doing crafts with the kids. School starts again in August it will be here before I know it!

Summer Break day three!

I had high hopes for day three. I made oatmeal for breakfast and did more laundry. Why is there always laundry? Today I was tired though. I don't think I slept well. Esther woke up three times and kept head-butting me. Being whacked in the middle of the night by a 30 pound two year old is not fun. I don't know, I just haven't felt well. It happens, I have a chronic illness, a toddler and two kids! It is what it is.

Anyway, I had to get out the house so we took a load of trash to the dump and on the way back stopped at the thrift store where I bought a matching plate set with teacups. The kids love it. I did too. Until...I got home. Where am I going to put all this new stuff? I have no idea. There is 15 salad plates, 7 large dinner plates, 8 cups, 8 saucers, two serving platters, and 10 small desert plates! We don't need all of this--but you had to buy it together or not at all. I am not sure I made the right choice and it's been haunting me all day! Oh, and the kids picked out some nice $1 glasses to drink their kombucha in, because we don't have enough breakable things in our house. 

I had zero motivation for lunch after we got home with my impulse plate buy. I made homemade mac and cheese, hardboiled eggs and sautéed some frozen veggies. Everyone loved it. I should be lackluster in the kitchen more often.

It was then I realized I forgot to thaw meat for dinner. I decided to make bagels.

I also can't stop thinking about tomorrow. Tomorrow is volunteer day, a long busy day where I leave my house and try to be a mentor to another mom. I think we really end up mentoring each other. Then we have our evaluations for the kids--in Virginia every homeschooled kid after first grade must submit proof of progress, and we do ours via the evaluation letter method (there are a few different ways) and it's tomorrow. Why did I schedule this all on the same day? I don't know. I'm crazy. Send help.

Then we can go to nature group. If I can still walk. I don't think we will make it to nature group. I'm tired even thinking about it! I think going home and popping in a movie while I make tacos is what I will be doing. The kids love nature group though. I don't think I"ll be up for it this time.

Anyway, I'm supposed to be chatting about today, not tomorrow. Becky had piano group lesson tonight so I had to leave my house at 3:30, which was awful. I ran to pick up the milk on the way and planned to sit in my car while Becky had her lesson, the park we usually go to was flooded and the friend I usually hang out with had a sick husband...but then when I got there said friend invited me to the mall and we had a blast! We will probably all catch the flu in three days but impromptu play dates are fun and I needed that. 

We got home at 5:20 and I had no idea what was for dinner. Oh, yeah bagels. No! Cried the kids, please don't murder us with bagels! So I grabbed some tortillas from the freezer and loaded them up with pizza sauce, pepperoni, cheese and seasonings and grilled them in the oven for 7 minutes. Everyone loved them. I don't know why I try.

My husband got home today a 7 and said he was going to mow the lawn. The lawn needs to be mowed but I was exhausted so I said please don't, watch the kids for me I want 30 minutes for myself. And since the grass is wet he said yes. Yay! That is how I am writing this pose.

Early bedtime, I'm your girl.

I'm going to watch 7 minutes of Candace Owens and then go do the dishes.

Day two of 'Summer Break'

Day two I slept in and was served a bagel in bed by husband. This was very unexpected, he does not do breakfasts. It was sweet, and made me smile. 

For some reason I woke up feeling like mud after a truck has run over it several times. I told the kids I couldn't handle any questions until after I had my vitamins and some water--after hydrating and contemplating my existence, we read books all snuggled up on the couch. We read a Lyle Crocodile book (Reuben's pick) and then we read The Snow Children and The Story of King Lion (Becky's pick) both by Sibylle Von Offers. And then we read Summer Story. Which was my pick, by Jill Barklem. Esther wants to nurse the whole time which is not helping me wean. Every time I sit down she thinks her milk buffet is being served. It's not. But she's confused. And it's hard to read a book over a tumbling, nursing toddler. 

I put away lots of laundry and changed the sheets on our bed and texted some friends and puttered around the house while my children followed me and told me they were 'a bit bored because of the rain and because I had declared today a screen free day' which I later regretted (several times) but nevertheless it was very good for all of us. I need to do another one tomorrow. 

The weather was really odd today. It kept raining for 1-2 hours followed by sunshine, then more rain. This happened 3-4 times and the kids were mesmerized! I did send them out when the sun shone and thus all of them achieved a state of muddy happiness at least once today. Except me. I do not like mud, or wet grass. I am picky.

From our Tea Party today. I made a chocolate cake.

We had spaghetti for lunch and Becky's piano lesson right after, followed by Esther completely skipping her nap. (she had a 10 minute car nap...) Anyway, we came home, did dishes and sewed with Reuben a bit and did our free reading. Reuben's book is Peter Duck and Becky's book is Twig. Both good books. Esther had a milk bar feeding since I was sitting and then I ate some chocolate while she dumped out all her toys and the kids, once again, reminded me how bored they were. I gave them both chores, and then we read our devotional together while we had tea and cake. Rainy days are tea days and this is our third tea party in a row. I will get fat. Oh, who am I kidding, I'm already quite plush. The cake was delicious. 

I rounded out the evening with dinner. I made pot roast with roasted broccoli and sweet potatoes. It was very filling. Now the kids are playing with our stair slide while I ramble on and wait for Daddy to come home. God is good! 

I might skip the dishes tonight and read a book instead. What kind of chaos am I complying with? I don't know. I need more chocolate. 

The First Day of 'Summer Break'

The first day of summer break started bright and early with Esther's two year wellness check. I really don't like going to the doctor when my child is well and visit the building where all the sick people go but here we are. She's around 28 pounds (she was deathly afraid of the scale and would leap off every time I tried to put her on!) and...she's perfect. Everything is going well. Except she doesn't sleep through the night and she's still addicted to her milkies made by mommy and I'm tired. Our peditration is great tho and besides one tired mama who needed coffee and to not leave her house at 8am (why did I schedule it so early??) everything went fine. 

We all made it home in one piece. 

Reuben has been playing through the Portal games and at nap time he asked me if he could play a co-op portal game while I put Esther down. He had never tried the two player option before and I didn't think that it would be an issue. Uh, okay? I don't know anything about Portal. Anyway I come down from getting Esther asleep and hear him talking to someone in his room. He knows he isn't supposed to play games where he is chatting with strangers on the internet, but he said he didn't know that would happen. He finishes the game with an ultra level of parental hovering-over-the-shoulder watchfulness and then I gave him a lecture about internet safety. Nine is too old to be live chatting with strangers on the internet. I should know, I grew up in AOL chatrooms. I then told him he could not play portal co-op. He was not excited about this new rule.

Well, we did some free reading after Esther woke and had a tea party with chocolate chip cookies and I put away three loads of laundry and there is two more loads to sort after I finish this post plus one more drying...the laundry seems never ending around here for some reason...and then Becky and I sewed a tote bag and she is embroidering it for a friend (her idea). Reuben and I will sew tomorrow--one kid is needed to keep the baby from grabbing everything and I don't know why I tried to teach a sewing lesson with a two year old but here we are. No one got hurt except Esther had two meltdowns that she couldn't touch everything while Becky was sewing and I don't think she understands why I can't always be a lap when she wants one. She's so cute. She needed a longer nap, today's was 45 minutes instead of her usual 1.5 hours. 

Daddy actually made it home at 6. He seemed stressed and sometimes when he comes home stressed it disrupts the flow of our day. He crabbed at the kids for going outside (he was worried they would get dirty, a irrational fear of his that he is working on) and then he snapped at Becky to help Esther off a chair and then the soup I made turned out to be too spicy the kids cried and all I really had to eat besides the fiery hot lava soup was sourdough...so they had that with butter for dinner. The soup was really spicy. I don't know what I did wrong. I did put jalapeño in it but it never makes it that spicy. Must be extra fresh jalapeño. Sigh. Becky had a meltdown after dinner which is what she does when daddy is stressed but I got them all rounded up on the couch and left them watching funny cat videos so I could head up to write this post and knit for a little de-stress time.

Well, I need to go down and face my loads of laundry and make some plans for tomorrow. I had wanted to start decluttering and deep cleaning the house as soon as school ended but I just didn't have the energy today. Maybe tomorrow? 

And that was our first day of summer break. School is already an afterthought I don't want to look at another math book until July. 

I've completely lost my taste and smell

As if it couldn't get any worse, I have absolutely zero taste or smell. The internet is telling me it takes 4-6 weeks to get your taste and smell back after covid which is just great. Eating chocolate tastes the same as a sip of water. Everything tastes like nothing and nothing tastes like everything. This is horrible. Also, google told me that covid attacks the cells in your nose and that is why you loose your taste? What in the world is going on with this virus. Why would anyone create a virus that takes away one of your five senses? Are they going to come out with a new virus that takes away touch or sight next? I don't get it. I'm not a criminal mastermind virologist set out to cripple the world with a deadly virus...but this is horrible. I can't taste or smell anything and meal time is lackluster and frankly, unappealing in every sense of the world. 

Pray for me. I have five weeks to go. I hope I'll make it. One time when I had covid it took four weeks for my taste and smell to come back and I was literally at the end of my rope by week three. I remember crying and watching my kids eat soup of all things and to me it smelled like a bowl of nothing flavored with nothing. 

Food deserves to be tasted and savored, ya'll. 

Reuben and maybe Daddy have come down with the 'Rona and I bet Becky and Esther are next. We shall see, we shall see.

Also how many times am I going to have this stupid virus sheeeeeshhh. I've gotten it like twice year since 2020. I'm SO OVER IT. Please go infect someone else.

I can't even taste my nettle tea. And I like nettle tea.

Wake me up in four weeks, I'm going to bed. 

Paper Modelling: Chair, High Backed Chair, Settle

Three more paper modeling tutorials. Enjoy!

Sick Again

I'm sick again. Only me! What is this baffling phenomenon? Usually one of the kids gets sick followed by me or husband and the rest of my family. But this is the second time I've gotten sick first this year!

a selfie before being sick....

This Saturday is Reuben's last football game. His team has lost two, won two, and tied once (no one was able to score) and I think that is a perfect season of learning and achievements. It was also chaos having two more things to schedule in our week--one practice and one game--so I am very glad the end of the season draweth nigh. Our last week of school is supposed to be this week too. I finished Becky's school but being sick has made Reuben's delayed again. He still has 3 days of school left. I might just forget about it or we will do it next week. I haven't decided yet.

I've been loving this YouTube account of Madisun Gray in CA. Her minimalist lifestyle videos keep my heart full of joy and help with my impulse buying. It was through her that I found out about the 10 item wardrobe which I did for spring and just switched it up to a summer one, now that it's above 80f daily here. 

Being sick is no fun. I am not having any fun. My house is once again a mess and my husband has been working long hours, my kids are tired of helping with the baby (she's napping right now! I couldn't sleep!) and they are tired of leftovers. Hopefully I am teaching them the beauty of family and they can learn to be thankful the meals we have. I am trying to be thankful myself.

Here is to summer and beyond! 

Paper Sloyd: Key Tag, Stamp Book, Triangular Catch All

Three more paper modelling lessons! These videos cover the key tag, stamp book and triangular catch all. Hope these videos help you as you homeschool your little ones through sloyd. Good luck! 

Esther Rose Turns Two!

It was a beautiful balmy day for Esther's birthday, with a high around 80. We went to her favorite park with friends and some homemade carrot cake cupcakes (Esther slowly licked the frosting off hers) and after her nap we got pizza and ice cream. I am not sure she completely understands birthdays. Hah! She knows how to sing happy birthday though.

We had to leave a bit early due to husband having a horrible allergy attack and Becky crying because she was too hot...it's just life with littles and pollen. 

But after ice cream and attention, Esther is throughly worn out. She had a massive nap. Now shes is happy as a lark playing outside while I write her birthday post. Esther, you are amazing and I love you. I can't wait to see you turn 22, much less 2! Every day with you is a gift. 

For her birthday she got a chattermax that actually talks from amazon and a little fluffy ball-alien thing. She is over the moon! Oh to be two and to love your mama and be ecstatic about ice cream and sleep like an angel. 

We are blessed to have her. 

Her Last Day

Things have been particularly stressful lately. It's our first week well from a cold, we ate all the leftovers and there are some foods in the fridge that need to be thrown out. So much needs to be done! My house is neat but the deep cleaning I do every week needs to be done and I have no energy. Next week is our last week of school and wow is everyone ready to be done, including the teacher! Summer break, here we come! 

Brian has been working a lot and I think the stress of work is getting to him. I wish I knew how to help him manage it. He won't pack his lunch when he's stressed, and even when I make his lunch and put it in the fridge he won't take it! It's like I have to make it, pack it, and put it in his lunchbox by the door with his keys attached so he won't forget it, and sometimes I am not even awake when he leaves. It depends on how much I nursed with Esther Rose the night before. And it's not like he will just go out to eat if he forgets his lunch--he will skip lunch which I think adds to his stress and moods when he gets home. 

We have a lot of work to do with owning a house--so many things need addressing and he is the main one that does things like changes high lightbulbs and puts siding on, fixes cars, mows the lawn...in the winter the lawn isn't an issue but in the spring and summer our yard is a long messy grassy tundra. I always feel so defeated by our lawn. Husband is so exhausted on the weekends sometimes he can't mow, or sometimes he is sick and then we get behind and once we get behind it's like we never catch up! 

I can't mow with a baby and honestly I don't even know if I could start the mower since it's extremely old and ornery. Even my husband struggles with starting it. Anyway, he has been unhappy and in a bad mood for awhile and I am not sure if it's work, or turning 40, or something I am doing.  Pray for him, and for me, because I am tired too.

I'm volunteering as a mentor for the month of May. When I signed up things were going smoothly and of course now I feel stressed, but it will be okay. I am excited to meet the lady I will be mentoring. It always goes two ways--I learn so much from them as they learn from me. It is pregnancy resource mentoring--the girl I mentor is expecting a baby! You are supposed to support them emotionally and offer friendship and encouragement. Most of the ladies who join are low income or single moms. At the end of the month of mentoring you throw them a baby shower. It's going to be so much fun. I love people and I hope I can be a help to this mother in whatever way she needs.

Esther Rose turns two tomorrow. I am thunderstruck as to how fast the two years since her birth have gone. I am a little sad that her little brother or sister didn't make it. I really wanted her to be a big sister, but I am trusting God and know he knows what is best for our family. God has been so good to us in so many ways! 

I want to find a pool to join for the summer. I'd like to live there all summer long. The kids love swimming and need practice. Any lakes/rivers are too far away (closest one is 45 minutes) and I'd love to swim as much as possible. I also need to sign them up for swim lessons, hopefully there are still some available. 

Today is Esther Rose's last day to be one. I made an amazing fried rice for lunch, the best I ever made. We had sausage and eggs for breakfast with a keifer smoothie and I have a chuck of beef in the crock pot for lunch.  We have to go out at 4 to pick up our Azure order so I want something prepared for when we come back. I'm prepared, unlike yesterday when I was too tired to cook so Reuben made brownies and we all ate that with ice cream. The kids were thrilled, I felt some mom guilt but we all lived and here we are with the veggies and the rice! 

I'm "redoing" our bedroom. I have never really decorated it or painted and I really want to jazz it up. The idea is to have a theme (our sheets/ curtains are all over the place, red a blue!! a nightmare) and I gave myself a budget of 400, spending 100 a week to split it up for budgeting. I am going to order a new duvet in a brown color, and a desk for the kids computer because it's been on a side table forever annoying me with copious plugs and wires...I also ordered a bed skirt to hide all the stuff under the bed as well as new sheets that match and new curtains, and artwork for the walls. I'm so excited for something fresh and new! Half the stuff is ordered and the other half will have to wait until next paycheck. 

How are you all?

Paper Modelling: Barn, Rabbit Hutch, Trough

Here are three more paper modeling tutorials for those taking their kids through Paper Modelling by M. Swannell. Enjoy! Do you do paper sloyd at home in your homeschool? We love it here-- though it is very hard and frustrating at times. Good luck! 

Enjoy the Barn, Rabbit Hutch and Trough from year one. 

Ambleside Year 4, Year 1 Thoughts

I am about to finish my first year homeschooling two children with a toddler! We have three weeks left, but I am going to squish it into two. I deserve a reward. Like a large bar of dark chocolate! Hahah! And so do the kids! We really all have worked so hard. 

Well, what a whirlwind. I was reading my blog about my thoughts when I did year 1 last time and wow do I feel (mostly) differently! My favorite book to read with Becky was the animal stories from James Herriot's Treasury for Children. My least favorite book this time around was the Burgess Bird Book. If I have to read about Peter Rabbit going lippity lippity around the woods and taking to birds one more time I might go insane. 

Becky said her favorite book was Aesop's Fables. 

Year one went smoothly. Becky is a natural narrator who can give very good narrations when she pays attention. Her attention is the key thing! She started school with gusto and was loving every day, until something switched and she lost interest. I started giving her Fridays off and doing her work just Monday-Thursday and that seemed to help. Her favorite subject is drawing and she's still doing piano. She's just amazing. She has a little bit of dysgraphia and a whole lot of gumption and one fiery attitude. She's perfect. And I hope after the summer break she will head into year two with a smile. 

She's reading simple words. After hunting around for a good curriculum (the one I used with Reuben was not working with her dysgraphia) we are on lesson 38 of Teach your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. I told her we will have to do some of that through the summer so she doesn't forget everything. She understood but wasn't thrilled. 

Unlike Reuben's first year where I gave up and we ended school with 5 or 6 weeks of Ambleside left (I had planned to do a few readings in the summer but never did) we finished the entire curriculum with Becky. It feels great to know what I am doing and what to expect going forward. Homeschooling has grown with me, and I've grown into it. First children are trial children, right? I'm laughing, are you laughing?

Reuben is doing January to January school term right now, so he just finished Terms 1 and 2 of Year 4 and will finish up year 4 in August and start year 5 right after. My favorite book hands down with him has been Abigail Adams. I think I will adore that book for the rest of my life. It's perfect and I never knew how amazing Abigail and John Adams really were, and how much a part of history. Reuben loved Robinson Crusoe--though the readings were long and at first it was quite a slog. He also loves Minn of the Mississippi. Really, all the year four books are so good, I've only heard him complain about Plutarch's Lives. And I complain about Plutarch too. What is he? Why is he? I don't know, but we are doing it. Perhaps it will make sense later.

We started written narrations in the second term of year 4 and he's doing great. He can do a bible reading here and there by himself and he's reading great, but not able to do his readings by himself yet which suits me just fine. I need this education just as much as him and it is nice to read it together. I love the new subjects too. We read A Midsummer's Night's Dream in the first term and he picked Romeo and Juliet for the second term. I enjoy latin immensely and grammar has been hard (because of my dyslexia) but fun. He enjoys it all. 

Next year we are dropping Spanish for sign language. I also rarely make it to music study. It is what it is. Life is going and so is school and it's all intermixed and interesting. 

How are you all? How was your year? 

I'm already adding a year five book to my amazon orders here and there...getting excited about new books and new stories!